MS Dhoni does things that people least expect him to do. Be in giving Joginder Sharma the final over of the T20 World Cup final in 2007, or walking out to bat ahead of the in-form Yuvraj Singh in the 2011 World Cup final. Only MS knows what Dhoni does. The former India captain has made a career out of finishing matches for his team and pulling a rabbit out of the hat. Who would have thought that under him, Chennai Super Kings would roar back to win the IPL this year after becoming the first team to be knocked out in 2020?
Of the many surprising decisions Dhoni has made, the one that probably caught his Indian teammates the most was his decision to retire from Test cricket. In 2014, after India and Australia played out a draw in the Boxing Day Test, a press release from BCCI with the headline ‘MS Dhoni retires from Test cricket' sent media organisations into a shockwave. He was 33 when Dhoni decided to say goodbye to India whites.
However, the media wasn't the only one to grapple the news of Dhoni retiring from Tests. It was something his India teammates did not see coming either. Former coach of the Indian cricket team Ravi Shastri, who was serving as the director of the Indian team, recalled scenes from the MCG dressing room, when Dhoni casually dropped the R word and left everyone shell-shocked.
"Well, it came as a surprise. He came to me and said 'I want to say something to the boys'. I said 'sure'. I thought he was going to say something about the draw. He comes out. I just saw the faces around the dressing room. Most of the boys were in a state of shock when MS made the announcement. But that’s MS for you," Shastri said while speaking to Star Sports.
{{/usCountry}}"Well, it came as a surprise. He came to me and said 'I want to say something to the boys'. I said 'sure'. I thought he was going to say something about the draw. He comes out. I just saw the faces around the dressing room. Most of the boys were in a state of shock when MS made the announcement. But that’s MS for you," Shastri said while speaking to Star Sports.
{{/usCountry}}"He was waiting for an opportune time to make the announcement. He knew how much his body could take and he wanted to prolong his white-ball career. When your body tells you it’s enough, it’s enough, there are no second thoughts about that."
Dhoni finished as India's then-most successful Test captain, with 27 wins from 60 Tests. It stood tall for seven years before Virat Kohli bettered it. When Dhoni decided it was time, Shastri reveals he knew that Kohli was the man to take Indian cricket forward. He had already led in the Adelaide Test, which India came close to winning before a batting collapse saw them lose. But the leadership acumen was spotted by Shastri.
"I knew that the moment MS Dhoni finishes, Virat Kohli is the guy to lead the side. He (MS Dhoni) knew who was the next leader in line," the ex-India coach pointed out.